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The ultimate commitment

By the editors of Shape.com

I'm at the point with my triathlon training that it's become my number one priority (outside of my job of course); with one month to go it's extremely crucial I make every practice. Unfortunately, my social life has taken a beating--it's actually kind of nonexistent. My friends have been wondering what's going on with me when I choose to stay in on a Saturday night, well every night. I've explained to them that the 'old Jenna' is not gone, she's just taking a break for a while, but I still feel bad I don't have enough time right now for it all. Even though I've sort of disappeared--and broken plans with friends more times than I can count--I'm still the same me, but paying a lot more attention to what my body needs, instead of doing whatever I want. So I've kissed Friday nights goodbye--TV off, computer shut down, Blackberry put on silent--and I'm in bed by 9 p.m.

For instance, we had an intense brick (what we call a run-bike-run routine) on Saturday morning and it definitely required all the energy I had. This practice was a good rehearsal of the bike and run legs of the triathlon--we started off at 7 a.m. with a mile warm-up run, switched into our biking gear and rode for about 20-25 miles (two hours in Central Park), and finished back at the transition area in Riverside Park to end with a 5 mile run. I actually felt amazing after this and much more confident than I've been in a long time. The only problem I had was switching from biking to running--I have no idea how I got my body to run after being cramped on a bike for so long; my legs actually felt foreign to me as I tried to get them to move one step in front of the other. But about five minutes into the run, my endurance kicked in and the previous two-hour bike ride seemed like it had never actually happened at all.

Practice went so well and I'm definitely more excited for the realthing, but later that night I could barely keep my eyes open. My sociallife may be suffering, but this will all be worth it when I cross thatfinish line. The countdown begins!Sharon, me, Amanda, & Mara at Saturday morning brick!